


we might just get away with it

by SeptemberSevertana



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Aftermath of grief, Emotional Support, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Murder, Non-Platonic Cuddling, Non-con Magic Theft, Physical symptoms of emotional abuse, Platonic Cuddling, Shadow Weaver is a monster, Talking, Y'all know how I feel about her
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-17
Updated: 2019-10-17
Packaged: 2020-12-21 01:22:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21066446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeptemberSevertana/pseuds/SeptemberSevertana
Summary: Glimmer commits a crime. Catra watches the after-effects. Morality is discussed.AKA, Stein's Law: If something cannot go on forever, it will stop.And the fallout from the stoppage is formidable.





	we might just get away with it

**Author's Note:**

> This has taken me around six weeks to write, and during that time a lot of people in my life have had to listen to me talk about this fic so I'm going to take this opportunity to thank them: L (my courageous and frankly overworked editor, who, despite being hella busy lately still graciously took a look at this for me), C and S (my amigos who don't even watch She-Ra and still kindly listened), my parents (who just know that fanfiction takes a lot of time and energy and let me do my thing), a professor (who heard about it today), and my siblings (one of whom doesn't watch the show and the other of whom nodded and smiled as I went on a long rant about why Glitra is so important to me). Thank you all so very much. I wouldn't write nearly as often or with any kind of quality without your support. 
> 
> Today is my birthday, and posting this is the present I gave myself. Thank you to anyone who reads this; you're offering me a reprieve from the veritable clusterfuck my week has become. 
> 
> Last note: I didn't put Rape/Non-Con as an Archive Warning because I can't bring myself to write either. The non-con referenced in the tags ends up relating more to emotional abuse and manipulation with victim-blaming undertones. However, if this is triggering for you, please please please do not read this fic. I wrote this fic originally to allow characters to deal with these issues and find ways to live emotionally healthy lives afterward, but if it's not your cup of tea, be kind to yourself and close this tab. 
> 
> Thank you, and enjoy. Chapter title is from 'False God' by Taylor Swift. Stein's Law is from my required reading for this week and I discovered it fit rather well with the themes of this fic.

Glimmer thought absently that while the Whispering Woods were useful as a line of defense for Bright Moon, navigating the region proved difficult enough to be more than a little frustrating. 

Every time she walked past the big tree with the large X carved into it, the forest changed. She must have been walking in circles; or maybe, she and the tree were moving, and the rest of the forest was staying still. It must have been magical. Someone must have figured out how to use the Whispering Woods to their offensive advantage, must have figured out how to attack. 

Her dad could have done it. 

Glimmer breathed in and out, trying to center herself. _ Just reach out. Just feel the trees, feel the ground. You’re alive, and all of this is alive. You can connect if you just reach. _

The forest froze in place. A path formed in Glimmer’s mind, extending from her arm down into the undergrowth, shining in a zigzagging line for the next couple of miles. She’d get to the edge of the Whispering Woods by morning. 

The woods murmured gentle satisfaction in her ear. Glimmer smiled. 

…

_ She looked at the proffered hand cautiously. _

_ “What are you waiting for?” _

_ She took the hand. Her skin crawled as magic was drawn from her body and into someone else’s. _

_ It hurt. A lot. But she wasn’t going to say that. Stopping the Portal was more important than anything else. She wouldn’t have done any of this if she didn’t think so. _

…

Glimmer’s muscles ached. It was a good ache, she thought. She wasn’t thirsty; maybe she would never be thirsty again. Not hungry either. Only a small, nagging ache lived in her arm, the center of her chest, and her legs. 

The path tugged at her; her direction had to change. Glimmer followed the forest’s suggestion, winding her way left. 

The weight on her arm only grew. 

…

_ She cried. She hated crying but everything hurt and her eyes couldn’t help themselves from wanting to fall out of her head. A knot of disgusting pain clenched in the center of her chest as Adora hugged her, as Bow hugged her. The other princesses kept their distance; Perfuma being held back by Mermista and Frosta folding her arms and refusing to get involved. _

_ Frosta knew this feeling of loss. Frosta would leave her alone. _

_ Someone, she realized, had relegated themselves to the edge of the picture, made themselves separate from the grief. As she tried to figure out who, Adora broke her concentration, murmuring sweet apologies into her ears. _

_ The presence left, but she could track it, flashing out of the castle. She didn’t move to follow. She stayed in the circle of her best friends’ love, trying to soak up enough to be able to breathe again. _

…

The forest thinned out. The path thinned, too, but Glimmer could find her way from there. 

She knew exactly where Catra would go. 

Heat sat on her shoulders. Glimmer could feel herself sweat, could smell it. She licked the inside of her mouth. Still not thirsty. She looked down at her stomach. Still not hungry. 

With a thought, she cleaned her clothes of dirt. She had the rest of the day to walk before she reached her destination. Glimmer wanted to look as unruffled as she felt. 

The land around her began drying out, becoming rocky and sandy. Bones appeared in the ground as if dropped there by a giant hand hundreds of years ago. Every few yards, Glimmer would look behind her and her footprints would disappear, covered with new, windblown sand. 

…

_ “I just need enough to get onto the castle grounds. I intend to start healing the land the portal ruptured.” _

_ She sighed, feeling her hand being tugged as energy was drained from her body. “Can’t you just get Adora to heal the land?” _

_ “Adora is occupied with her own matters. I’ll do this myself.” A flash of light. _

_ Her hand dropped back onto the bed. Her head clouded over even further; the space between her ears buzzed with the kind of static that seemed to constantly pollute Bow’s map. _

_ She couldn’t recall when it was that she became so tired, the aching of her limbs pervasive and warm. She wanted to fight back. _

…

This landscape had no desire to help her. It wanted her to get lost, to collapse out here and never return. She shrugged, reaching her consciousness out. Two living beings half a day’s walk away, licking their wounds. Glimmer pulled rocks from under the surface of the ground, interlocking them and neatly straightening them. Tiny granules came from dunes miles away to even out her terrain. She didn’t want to walk up hills. 

She wanted to walk; there was no point in teleporting. But forming a smooth, flat path would make walking easier. After all, she was carrying a very important package. 

…

_ She pulled as hard as she could. It felt like she was yanking tendons and muscles apart, like a rubber band getting thinner and tenser with every second, like one wrong move would snap her. Like water rushing in, pouring into her body to fill the gaps. _

_ She didn’t realize how many gaps existed until now. _

_ The body (the vessel) on the ground below choked, black smoke poisoning the air before dissipating. _

_ Light wove around her hands as she took her magic back. It ran up her arms and into her chest, settling itself. Bits of it leaked from her chest into her eyes, illuminating the scenes she turned her head to see: the bareness of the spare room, the windows barely revealing any forest. The moon had been covered by clouds since last week, in reaction. _

_ In reaction. _

_ In. _

_ She screamed, the last of her magic absorbing. The vessel on the ground bled smoke. _

…

“Catra,” she called, careful not to sound threatening. Glimmer knew her voice would set Catra and Hordak on edge anyway, but better to not start this interaction with fighting. 

It was an interaction for a purpose, after all. 

Hordak laid crumpled in the sand, prone and scarcely breathing. Glimmer absently found him pathetic; he’d cared about Entrapta, truly. Amazing how the fight could go out of someone once what they had to live for disappeared. 

He wasn’t going to answer her. But she didn’t want to speak to him anyway. 

“Catra,” Glimmer called again, slinging her package down from over her shoulder. It thumped onto the ground, deadweight made clumsy with long limbs. “I have something for you.” 

“I want nothing you could give me except Adora’s head on a spike.” Catra sprang from the shadows, neatly jumping over Hordak and perching on her knees a little too close to Glimmer. It was meant to be disconcerting, Glimmer supposed, having Catra so near. 

“You're blaming the wrong person for all of this,” Glimmer replied blankly. “Don’t you see? I killed the real monster.” 

“You…” Catra trailed off, looking down. “You did this?” 

“Yes. It was the only way.” Glimmer gently kicked Shadow Weaver’s body. It had stopped sputtering smoke a few hours into her journey. 

“I thought you princesses were all about rescuing people from themselves and second chances,” Catra scoffed, looking bewildered at the ground. 

Glimmer shrugged noncommittally. “She was proof that some people can’t change. Given the opportunity to steal power and hurt people, she gladly took it. Now she can’t do that anymore. We’re free now, I freed us.” 

“Freed _ us_?” Catra seethed. “How dare you put yourself on my level? I lived with her for decades, I was _raised_ by her. There is no universe in which you and I suffered the same.” 

“My mom died,” Glimmer said simply. “Yours never existed. Isn’t that awful enough?” 

Catra huffed, beginning to pace. “And what do you expect me to do with her anyway? I’m on the run, you idiot, I can’t exactly stuff her in a pack and carry her with me.” 

Glimmer’s eyes grew sharp. “Leave her in the sand for all I care. She’s scum and there’s no use thinking about her anymore. She can’t hurt anyone, she’s dead. Just accept the gift and go on with your life.” 

“Gift?” Catra stopped walking. “Gift?” 

“She’s for you. I did that for me, first and foremost, but I did that for you, too.” Glimmer’s stance shifted back and forth. “I got my powers back. That’s what I wanted. You wanted Adora dead, but you actually wanted Shadow Weaver to stop messing with your life. I won’t kill Adora, but I did one better. For you. I could have left Shadow Weaver suffering on the floor, locked in our prison room without my powers to sustain her. But I didn’t. I killed her and brought her to you. To show you.” 

“You…” Catra trailed off, kneeling on the ground to scan Shadow Weaver’s body. She picked up a lock of Shadow Weaver’s hair delicately between two claws, then let it drop back down to cover her face. “Let me see if I have this right: you brought a dead creature to my feet as a present, as if you were a cat and I your mistress.” Catra slithered into a standing position, padding toward Glimmer softly. “You watched the life leave Shadow Weaver’s eyes to please me?” 

“I killed her to get my powers back because she stole them from me, just like she stole the Black Garnet’s power,” Glimmer retorted hotly. “You were a second thought, maybe even a tenth thought after that.” 

Catra inclined her head. “Are you lying to me? After this beautiful display? You should know I can see right through you, Glimmer.” 

“No, you can’t.” 

“There’s no going back on what you said to me,” Catra breathed next to Glimmer’s ear. “Not ever. Now, I want to burn her body and scatter the ashes in the wind. We won’t get any help from Hordak but I don’t think we need him to complete this task, hm?” 

Glimmer shook her head slowly. “This is ours.” 

Catra smiled with all her teeth, flicking her tongue over her canines. “I knew you’d come around.” 

…

_ “How are you feeling today?” Adora asked, looking worried. _

_ She shrugged. “No better than yesterday.” _

_ “Soup!” Bow insisted. “I’ll make another batch.” _

_ She didn’t tell them her bones felt ground up and clumpy, sticking onto her muscles like glue. She didn’t tell them she couldn’t keep the soup down, that her body rejected water and thin crackers. She didn’t say that she didn’t think she’d ever get better. _

_ “Thanks. I just hope I can get up and move around soon,” she replied with an affected tone of confidence. _

…

Glimmer pulled piles of driftwood from under the sand, her magic brushing them off and arranging them to build a pyre. 

“How are you doing that?” Catra asked. 

Glimmer lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “I’ve been stronger since I got my powers back. I can do more without straining myself physically or magically. I haven’t tested my teleportation yet but…” She flashed in and out of existence ten times, twenty times, appearing and reappearing all over Catra’s makeshift campsite. “I don’t feel tired at all from doing that.” 

“Shadow Weaver couldn’t have been that powerful,” Catra responded, a little peeved. 

“No. This is probably because Adora used the sword to heal Shadow Weaver.” 

Catra raised an eyebrow. “You killed a Shadow Weaver at full capacity?” 

“Adora made it so that Shadow Weaver’s magic was neutral,” Glimmer explained. “Her illness happened because she became dependent on magic to keep her alive. Adora erased that dependence, but her powers were completely depleted. In order to stage the invasion of the Horde’s main camp, she combined her energy with mine, using her knowledge of magic to amplify my powers. That involved us being magically connected, though, so she began siphoning from me just like she siphoned from the Black Garnet.” She paused, lowering her hands and letting the firewood drop. “I took my magic back from her and broke our connection, but only because my magic magnetized to me first and foremost, not Shadow Weaver. My magic was on my side. If it wasn’t, getting my powers back would have killed me.” 

“There’d be one less prissy princess in the way of Shadow Weaver controlling Etheria,” Catra said quietly. 

“I hope you’re happy,” snapped Glimmer, clicking her fingers until the pyre lit up in a blaze. “Politically, I sabotaged my rebellion by assassinating our ally against the Horde and taking out one of your most influential enemies. Now that we don’t have a long-range teleport, it’ll be far more difficult to invade the Horde and destabilize you.” 

“Shadow Weaver would have hurt you a lot more in the long run.” Catra hefted the body over her shoulder to throw it on the fire, its bones breaking further with the force. “She can never be trusted, ever, and she would have gladly siphoned your magic until you were a husk before she found a way to do it to Adora and every other princess in the rebellion. She only wants power, and she would have destroyed our world to get it.” She paused. “You saved them from a short lifetime of pain and suffering. That’s a good thing!” 

“Really? Without her, you would have created a Portal and destroyed all reality around this planet! Talk about short lifetimes.” 

“Why are you second-guessing yourself now?” Catra yelled, gesturing wildly. “There is a dead body burning as we speak, there is no going back from that.”

“I don’t know, okay?” Glimmer shouted back. “Also, you can’t just ignore the whole ‘reality-destroying Portal’ thing. There is no going back from _ that _.” 

“I don’t fucking know either! I was so, so angry, and I’m still angry and I have no idea how to feel about anything now that Shadow Weaver’s dead. Okay? Is that what you wanted to hear?” 

They were silent for a minute. 

“Weren’t you angry?” Catra asked softly. “When you did this, weren’t you angry? Did it feel like you couldn’t see, like hurting her was the last option you had left, the only option that made any sense anymore?” 

Glimmer didn’t answer. 

“That’s how I felt opening the Portal. Everything was spiraling out of control and opening it would make everything still again. I wanted everything to stop. I just, I just wanted it all to stop, to go back to normal. I wanted Adora back,” Catra murmured. “I wanted her on my side and I wanted everything to be simple.” 

“Nothing is simple,” Glimmer huffed. 

“No. That doesn’t stop anybody from wanting simple, though, does it?” 

…

_ “Glimmer, can you hear me?” asked Adora, her forehead creasing with worry. _

_ She pulled her head up off her pillow as high as it could go. “Yeah,” she rasped. “I can hear you.” _

_ “Do I need to call the doctor again?” _

_ She laughed, but it descended into a coughing fit. “She’ll just say the same thing she said before. It’s not something she can fix with a spell, she already tried. I just want to rest.” _

_ “Something isn’t right about this, Glim.” Adora paused. “I wish Angella were here. She’d probably know what to do.” _

_ “I doubt it,” she replied numbly. “Mom never got sick.” _

…

The sun had started to rise. Glimmer clicked her fingers, making sure the fire kept blazing. Catra had fallen asleep on the ground beside her. 

What an expression of trust, Glimmer thought vacantly. Little paranoid Catra sleeping in her presence. She reached to run her fingers over one of Catra’s ears. Soft, like a blanket from home. Her hair seemed so tangled. 

“What are you doing?” Catra asked blearily, not opening her eyes. 

“Looking at you.” Glimmer withdrew her hand. 

“Hm. I’m wondering if we have different definitions of ‘looking’.” Catra sat up, stretching. “How long do you think it’ll take?” 

“It’s not like we’re cooking chicken. She’s much bigger so it should take much more time to turn her to ash.” Glimmer shrugged. “Maybe until sunset?” 

Catra nodded. 

“I should also make the fire hotter, and maybe put a shield around it to protect us from getting burned.” 

“Smart. This couldn’t handle third-degree burns,” Catra said, motioning around her face. 

“I think you could handle anything,” Glimmer replied simply, raising her hands to form the shield and watching the flames turn yellower with heat. “You’re adaptable, determined, and you can properly prioritize. You have people willing to fight for your cause.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Catra shifted awkwardly onto her tailbone, her arms clenching around her knees. “Do you really think that about me?” 

“How could I not? I’ve watched you fight for a while now. I was your prisoner. I know you.” 

Catra laughed bitterly. “You know me? How can you say that?” 

“Because it’s true,” Glimmer answered, eyebrows furrowing. “I gave you something no one else has been able to give you and I did so on purpose.” 

Catra stood up with a rush of air. “What is wrong with you? How can you talk like this about a person you _ murdered_?” 

“Murder is subjective,” Glimmer brushed off. “Shadow Weaver wasn’t completely a person, she hadn’t been since the moment she used my dad’s magic to consume power.” 

“No, you can’t get out of it that easily,” Catra insisted, her voice becoming almost irritatingly pitchy. “There has been something off since you got here. The real Glimmer would have told Adora and Bow, she wouldn’t have just started walking until she found the one person monstrous enough to forgive her for murder and then explain it away with craziness!” She ran a clawed hand through her hair, messing it up even further. “There’s something wrong. This must be from Shadow Weaver’s power, she must have poisoned you with it.” 

“Why can’t you understand that I did this? On my own, with no input?” Glimmer asked calmly. 

…

_ “I need more. There are still so many-” huffing breath, “so many things I can fix.” _

_ She struggled to open her eyes. “No. Can’t you see...how sick...you’re making me?” _

_ “It doesn’t matter how sick you are as long as the common good gets serviced,” came the response. “I need more, and I will take it from you if you don’t oblige. Someone needs to do something to mend what your mother left behind.” _

_ “Don’t...talk about mom...like that.” _

_ “She was a coward and a fool, and now I must clean up her messes in your place. Adora and the little archer boy are in the Crimson Waste, searching for that ungrateful lout, Catra, and your princesses are trying to heal their kingdoms after the destabilization the Portal caused. You are the only one abed, _ grieving _ as if none of this affects you until you’ve finished moping like a child. You’re behaving despicably, and you can remedy that somewhat by giving me the power I need to fix what you refuse to.” _

_ Tears collected in the corners of her eyes as her hand was yanked off the bedspread and magic was extracted with all the delicate nature of a person with a hacksaw cutting down a tree. She threw up over the side of the bed, her hand quickly and disgustedly relinquished. _

_ “I’ll be back soon. Perhaps moving around a bit would allow you to see that the silly tantrum you’re throwing cannot last.” The door slammed. _

…

“I know you! You wouldn’t…” Catra broke off. “You would never have such little respect for people’s lives, even people you hate.” 

“She abused you,” Glimmer shot back. “She wouldn’t have cared if you lived or died, and now you care that she can’t hurt you anymore?” 

“Of course I care! I may have hated her and loved her and wanted her to die all the time, but you can’t just kill people.” 

“So I can’t, but you can? You opened a Portal without caring about the consequences, and Adora told me that in the Portal reality, you would have kept it open until the entire world died just to hurt her. My crime is tiny in comparison to yours.” 

Catra let out a frustrated screech. “I don’t know how to snap you out of this.” She began pacing. “I can’t believe I was stupid enough to let you get near me, I should have known this was fucked up.” 

Glimmer shrugged. “I lower your defenses. Adora automatically puts you on your guard and you don’t think Bow’s enough of a threat to take seriously. You would have let me in whether you knew what I brought you or not.” 

“You’re even speaking wrong. Nothing is matching; your voice doesn’t mesh with what you’re saying at all.” Kicking sand at the shield, Catra continued frantically, “Are you scared to be here? Is this some sort of suicide mission? Did you think Hordak would accept your surrender if you brought Shadow Weaver to him?” 

“How could I be afraid of two leaders stripped of power and followers?” Glimmer looked down at her hand, which had begun to sift sand through its fingers. She wondered if glass would form from the superheated particulate on the ground. Maybe the fire wasn’t hot enough for that. “Even Scorpia has left you, your most loyal subordinate. Hordak lost his entire army and believes he’s lost Entrapta, the one person he trusts. He’s here with you out of obligation; he has nowhere else to go without being ripped apart. I give him much less credence and fear than I would give you.” She paused, trying to recall all of Catra’s questions. “Hordak isn’t a threat, yes, I mentioned that. Suicide?” Glimmer paused again. “Suicide. No. It’d be a waste of energy.” 

Catra stopped pacing. “Snap out of it. You are not allowed to be blasé about any of this.” 

“I think you’ll find I can treat any situation how I please.” 

…

_ She’d fallen asleep, somehow, probably too exhausted to stay awake. But there were footsteps in the doorway, unobtrusive and even more frightening for that fact. _

_ The presence didn’t speak, merely taking her hand from the bedspread and grasping it too tightly, tugging on her deepest power reserves like an anchor being pulled up from the ocean. For a moment, she could feel the current as it ran through the two of them, and she knew how to cut it off. Just a moment, and then it was gone. _

_ She tried to remember it. She tried to muster enough consciousness to pull back. _

_ “No,” she whispered. “No more.” _

_ “Silly girl, you have no right to refuse me. You’re the one who bonded us, do you recall? This has been your choice all along.” _

_ And she snapped. _

_ Suddenly her power came rushing back into her body, pouring into the cracks, filling up all the empty space and she was so _angry,_ so so _angry that_ Shadow Weaver had taken this away from her and used her and blamed her. _

_ Glimmer took her magic back. She took it all and she left nothing of Shadow Weaver’s behind, not even the life left in her wretched vessel. _

_ She screamed and screamed. And then she was silent. A body laid on the floor. Glimmer had put it there. _

_ Just a vessel, though. Just a person suit, a shell meant to be filled with energy and blood and now filled with nothing. She’d taken it. _

_ Glimmer flexed her fingers. She couldn’t leave the body there; somebody else would find it. _

…

Catra looked horrified. Glimmer couldn’t fathom why; people had the strangest reactions to things sometimes. Why be dramatic when one could simply respond with calm, measured statements? 

“She violated you,” Catra murmured, astounded. “She did it over and over again, taking your magic and your energy until you couldn’t fight back. But you found a way to fight back anyway.” 

“I had few other choices,” Glimmer replied, feeling a bit indignant. “It was either fight back or die in that bed.” 

“I knew you’d never kill someone in cold blood,” said Catra in one quick exhale. “I knew you weren’t capable of that.” 

Glimmer could feel the fire blaze up hotter, despite her conscious effort to subdue it. “I’m happy you approve of my decisions, Catra. After all, you are one of two people on this planet who either have or intended to have killed thousands of Etheria’s inhabitants.” 

Catra didn’t answer, tapping her fingers on her leg. 

“I can’t be worse than you,” Glimmer snapped. 

“You’re not,” Catra responded softly, making eye contact with Glimmer, her fingers stilling. “You never were, and I’m sorry for doubting you.” 

Glimmer had no reply. The fire crackled, sparks ricocheting off of the shield. 

…

_ “I don’t know what’s happening,” Adora murmured outside Glimmer’s bedroom door. “I admit I don’t have much experience with illness, but this can’t be normal.” _

_ “I’ve only seen Glimmer sick a couple times.” Bow shook his head. “Medicine doesn’t work; I think since her mom...was immortal, half of her body has no idea how to respond to illness. Angella told me King Micah used to bundle baby Glimmer in blankets and read her stories until she felt better, but none of his spells worked on her except diagnostic ones.” _

_ “I could try the sword?” _

_ “I’m not sure whether it would help or not,” Bow replied cautiously. “I don’t want to do anything that might hurt her.” _

_ Adora inhaled on a sobbing noise. “I want to help her so bad but I don’t know how.” _

_ Bow pulled Adora in for a hug. “I know. We all do. Let’s go visit her in the morning, I know you haven’t slept in a while.” _

_ Glimmer watched through slivered eyelids as her bedroom door closed. They were such good people; they shouldn’t have been worrying about her like that. She’d done this to herself. _

…

The fire started to die down in the evening. 

Catra giggled suddenly; Glimmer whipped around to stare at her. “Sorry, your stomach’s grumbling.” 

“Well, obviously, I haven’t eaten since two days ago.” Glimmer folded her arms. “And neither have you, but you don’t see me making fun.” 

“I’m used to being hungry, doll,” Catra replied, waving a hand dismissively. “We’re stranded in the desert with no allies, remember? I’ve had to negotiate food from my subordinates in the Crimson Waste, but the desert is still barren. We’re either going to have to make trade deals, or we’re going to have to get really friendly with some cacti.” 

Glimmer looked down at her knees. “I don’t want to take food from you if it’s so scarce.” 

“You need it more than we do if you’re going to cart yourself back to Bright Moon.” She paused. “You are going back, right?” 

“Of course! I have people who are worried about me and a kingdom to rebuild and new tactics to formulate.” Dropping the shield, Glimmer quickly tamped down the fire. She collected the ashes into a pink bubble that she poked and prodded until she determined it wouldn’t break. 

Catra blinked at the heat of the released fire. “Whoa, suddenly you’re ready to drop everything and leave?” 

Glimmer huffed in annoyance. “You just started making food preparations for my trip and asked me when I was going.” 

“You don’t have to go right this second. I’m not kicking you out, I just know you’d rather be a lot of places than the Crimson Waste with a war criminal and I’m facilitating that desire.” 

“Ooh, big word, facilitating. Also, I’ve been here with two war criminals, not just you.” 

Catra let out a short laugh. “Do you think Hordak counts as a person right now? He’s been a lump on the sand fifty feet from us this entire time, either too depressed or too asleep to notice us.” 

Glimmer glanced over to where Catra was pointing. He was definitely a lump and he was decidedly not fearsome. “Fine, I accept that.” She turned to face the path she’d made, the little rocks composing it beginning to sink back into the dunes. The bubble drifted solemnly beside her. “I can probably go without food until I get back to Bright Moon.” 

“Bullshit,” Catra replied bluntly, standing too. “At least if I come with you for a little while I can make sure you don’t starve on the way.” 

“You don’t think I can feed myself?” rejoined Glimmer scornfully. 

“I think you’re a princess who spent the majority of her life well-fed. Your mother would have had conniptions at the thought of her soldiers going hungry.” Catra fell silent. “Too soon?” 

Glimmer sighed resignedly. “I’m sick of people talking around it. Shadow Weaver was a manipulative sadist, but she was right about one thing: moping wasn’t helping me. Rebuilding my kingdom and figuring out our next steps would have been the better way to deal with mom’s death.”

“So, you’re going to let me find food? Is that what I’m hearing?” Catra began trailing behind Glimmer as they walked. 

“Just to make you stop bugging me about it.” 

…

_ She blinked down at her hands. Wreathed in light. Oozing it, like poison into water. _

_ The vessel had fallen to the side, discarded the moment she’d decided to inspect her fingers and palms. _

_ She was tainted now, irrevocably altered. She wondered if someone cut her open, they would see all the places she’d begun to crack, her once-pliable tissues dried up and flaking. This wasn’t forgivable, not able to be remedied. Magic itself should have rebelled against what she’d done, should have torn her body apart too, made the world balanced again. _

_ But she was still here, carrying a dead body in the forest, and part of her knew exactly where she was going and what was happening and the other part remained in shock, curled up in the corner of her bedroom, shaking. _

_ No time for shock now, she thought. Either she went back or she kept going, she couldn’t just stand here and wait for someone to find her. She would choose what happened this time. _

_ And she was never going to let Adora and Bow see this. _

…

“Berries? Off of those bushes? You’re kidding.” 

Catra shook her head. “Nope. Hordak got sick from eating more than one kind of fruit when we first went on the run, but not from this one.” 

Glimmer raised an eyebrow. The bubble bobbed up and down next to her as if nodding. “So Hordak was your poison-checker?” 

“You think I would deliberately put an unknown substance in my body without knowing what it would do?” Catra gently pulled a clump of berries off the bush. “I have trust issues, remember?” 

“Hordak probably deserved it anyhow,” concluded Glimmer quietly, accepting two from Catra’s outstretched hand. They were a little tart but burst satisfyingly in her mouth. 

“He’s a victim too, I hate to admit it. He was made wrong, and he’s been trying to prove himself since he got here.” Catra contemplatively chewed a small berry. “I don’t wanna understand it, but I was stuck with him for a while. It’s hard to be angry with someone that pathetic.” 

“I can probably do it.” Glimmer picked her own clump and stuffed three or four berries in her mouth. 

“Both of us are good at being angry,” Catra conceded. “Apparently I’m just not built for it as much as I used to be.” 

“Why? You probably have more to be angry about now than you did before the whole,” Glimmer gestured wildly, “Portal fiasco. Adora foiled your diabolical plan, Shadow Weaver defected to our side after betraying you. There was a coup that neither you nor your immediate superior managed to evade. Politically, that’s a death sentence. But worse, you lost-” She paused. “You lost Scorpia, the woman who would have literally died to make you happy. And don’t deny it, because I’ve heard the way she talked about you, and your actions toward the end were so heinous that she left you.” 

“Yes, please keep listing all the things I’ve lost, I can still find food that fucks up your digestion for days on end.” Catra shoved the rest of her berries in her mouth and wiped her fingers on her pants, starting to walk again. 

“Everything you said when I first got to your hiding spot sounded like a front.” 

“Like you could recognize anything like that at the time,” Catra scoffed. 

“Maybe I didn’t then, but I know _ you _.” Glimmer grabbed Catra’s hand, whipping her around to face Glimmer. “I want to understand better, that’s all.” 

“I thought you had me all figured out, doll,” Catra drawled. 

Glimmer let out a long groan of frustration. “You’re deflecting again and it’s really annoying me.” 

“Glad to know I can still elicit that reaction from you.” Catra smiled, actually smiled, pulling Glimmer closer by the hand. “You wanna know why I’m not angry?” she murmured. 

“Yes, obviously,” Glimmer replied, slightly subdued. “That’s what this whole argument has been about.” 

Catra sat down on the path, poking the bubble as it came down with Glimmer. The bubble darted behind Glimmer’s head seemingly in protest. “When you actually have nothing after wrongly believing you had nothing for a long time, it puts things in perspective.” 

“What does that mean?” Glimmer tugged at Catra’s hand. 

“I mean that when Adora left, I thought my life was over without her, and all I wanted was to get her back. But in the process of trying to find her, I gained Scorpia. I gained prestige and knowledge that allowed me to invade Bright Moon when no officer had been able to since your father was alive. I gained Entrapta as a friend and as a technology specialist since my knowledge of tech spans what weapons I have and how I can use them to destroy things. I finally gained respect from Crimson Waste inhabitants when I took over the largest gang in the region. I had so much all of a sudden, things that I had earned without trying to insert myself in Adora’s achievements. And in a few moves, I managed to fuck up all of that. I tried to blame Adora and blame Shadow Weaver and blame Entrapta and Scorpia, but I did that to myself. The reality that the Portal created, it represented things I thought I needed to have to be happy, but I realized I don’t need any of that anymore. I can be my own person without it.” She paused, running her thumb over Glimmer’s knuckles. “Does that make sense?” 

“You’re not angry because you took responsibility for your life?” Glimmer laughed. “When did you get mature?” 

Catra laughed too, as if in realization. “Maybe after two weeks living in the desert with only a depressed lump for company, I guess.” 

…

_ She woke up. _

_ She perfunctorily changed from her pajamas into regular clothes, hooking her cape over her shoulder. _

_ Today marked the first day of calling herself an orphan. _

_ Adora wrapped her arms around her the moment she emerged into the war room; she bore it for a few seconds before shrugging off the comfort and crossing the table to her mom’s (former) chair. “This meeting of the Princess Alliance is in session,” she rasped. “Any news on the Horde’s movements?” _

_ “I had a few couriers look into the status of their rebuilding efforts, but they’re still scrambling,” Mermista said. “Not even the really tall lady with pincers seemed active.” _

_ “That’s Scorpia,” Entrapta corrected. “She and Catra were…” she checked her charts, “‘best friends’? Yes, I believe that’s the correct term. She’s probably sad at her loss.” _

_ “Any news on Catra or Hordak’s whereabouts?” _

_ “None, I’m afraid,” Spinnerella asserted calmly. “We suspect that they-” _

_ She coughed loudly. “Sorry,” she said. “Please continue.” _

_ “We think that Catra and Hordak have holed up in the Crimson Waste with Catra’s gang buddies,” Netossa finished. _

_ “Do we have search parties out looking for them?” She broke into another coughing fit. “Sorry, I’ll get water in a moment.” _

_ “You’re forgiven, dear,” Perfuma answered. “Frosta has most of her army out in the field searching, but nothing has turned up yet.” _

_ “Inform me when something does?” _

_ Perfuma nodded. “Yes, my Queen.” _

_ She shook off the title with a physical shake of her head. “Not yet. I’m still a princess until coronation. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to lie down.” _

…

“What are we going to do now?” Glimmer asked quietly. 

“What we were going to do: go back to Bright Moon. You can tell Adora and Bow what we did or you can scatter her remains to the wind right now, whatever you want.” Catra stood up, pulling Glimmer along with her. “I’ll make sure you get there without dying, and I’ll definitely throw some ashes if that’s what you decide to do.” 

Glimmer looked at the bubble gently floating beside her. “Can I think about it?” 

“I guess I’ll encourage the queen of impulsive decisions to think things through just this once.” 

* * *

“Okay, roleplay time. Glimmer,” Catra swung her arms wildly as if she was swinging a sword and affected a weird, posh accent, “I am She-Ra, snooty blonde otherwise known as Adora. I have beautiful, flowing hair that somehow doesn’t get tangled in battle. Where have you been for the past few days? Where’s Shadow Weaver?” 

Glimmer held a straight face for ten seconds before bursting into laughter. “Adora doesn’t sound like that!” 

“Yes, she does,” Catra argued, breaking character for a moment. “Besides, you’re ruining the exercise.” 

“Right, sorry.” Glimmer rearranged her facial expression into something more serious. “Adora. I went into the Crimson Waste to find Catra and Hordak.” 

“And?” 

“And what?” 

“Where’s Shadow Weaver? She’s been missing as long as you have.” 

“Um…” She paused. “Ah...well, you see...Shadow Weaver was...erm…”

“You’re terrible at this. I have no idea how you managed to sneak out all the time.” Catra sighed. “Let’s try again. Glimmer, where’s Shadow Weaver? You haven’t seen her, have you?” 

Glimmer fidgeted. 

“Do you know where she might have gone?” 

Glimmer fidgeted some more. “Um…” 

“Adora won’t just take the,” Catra gestured, “bashful shrugging routine seriously. She’s too astute for that, she was trained to be a captain, a leader of highly suspicious people. She won’t fall for it.” 

“Maybe Adora trusts me enough not to ask.” Glimmer folded her arms, her foot tapping unconsciously. 

“As much as I think that’s true, this exercise isn’t just about Adora, it’s about a passerby in your kingdom who asks or a child. If you’re going to lie, you have to lie well, or it’ll end badly for you later.” Catra swatted the bubble, which had gotten perilously close to her face. “Either you go the full disclosure route or you lie about it and take the secret to your grave. Lying I can do, and I can help you do it.” 

“Why is it a binary like that? Why can’t I tell some people and not others?” 

Catra huffed. “Honestly, there doesn’t have to be a binary.” 

“Then why are you making one?” Glimmer watched Catra play with the ends of her hair. She itched to bat Catra’s hands away so she’d stop putting knots in it. 

Catra closed her eyes and let out a long breath. “In the Horde, there was always a binary. Good, bad. Loyal, traitor. Either you never told anybody anything, or you told one person and the whole squadron would find out.” 

“That sounds lonely. And really invasive, actually.” The bubble hovered over Glimmer’s leg and she patted it absently. 

“I guess it was.” 

They walked, slightly off-step from each other, for a few minutes in silence. The Whispering Woods were being persnickety again, so Glimmer had to periodically convince them to direct her and Catra the right direction. The bubble had decided to float next to her, brushing her right shoulder occasionally. Catra would sometimes look over as if she wanted to say something but never spoke when Glimmer looked back. 

What would Adora and Bow even say if she told them? They’d be understanding, maybe, would console her. They’d be scared, probably. What if she went off again? What if she hurt somebody else? They would tell Glimmer they supported her, maybe. But what about the value Shadow Weaver brought to the Princess Rebellion? Her magic was powerful and her intel vastly more accurate than any intel from former informants. The Horde was fractured now, but when Hordak finally returned, there’d be a huge mess for Glimmer and She-Ra and everybody else to clean up blind. Fighting now would be difficult, and the rebellion couldn’t afford to make reckless decisions that Glimmer was famous for. 

She’d messed this up so badly; Adora and Bow were never going to forgive her. 

The rebellion would never forgive her. 

“Glimmer, you’re spiraling. Glimmer. Glimmer, you have to snap out of it.” 

She looked up. She’d stopped walking. Her hands shook at her sides. “They’ll never forgive me.” 

“Yes, they will, doll.” 

“You can’t know that,” she replied blankly. “You don’t know them, you don’t know what’s at stake. I killed our most valuable informant. I murdered Shadow Weaver and her ashes are floating behind me and the rebellion will be thrown into chaos and I will have to leave, they won’t accept a known killer as a leader. The Horde knows what I’ve done, they’ll know we’re unstable, they’ll come after us.” 

Catra took Glimmer’s head in her hands. “Look at me.” She cast her eyes down. “No, look at _me_, not the ground. You’re too smart not to follow simple instructions.” 

Glimmer looked up. 

“Good job. Alright, how long have you known Bow?” 

“Since childhood,” she answered, as if reciting it. 

“Great, alright, how long have you known Adora?” 

“You know how long.” 

“Fine. Adora was a Horde soldier. Do you trust her?” 

“Of course I trust her,” Glimmer said impatiently. Catra’s eyes were two-toned, she registered. Her face had always seemed off from far away; Glimmer guessed that was why. Duality, she thought dimly. 

“Okay. Has Bow ever kept a secret from you?” 

“Yes.” She didn’t know how she didn’t figure it out. 

“And how did you feel when you found out he’d been keeping that from you? Maybe dragging it around with him waiting for the right time? Was he afraid to tell you?” 

Glimmer just looked at Catra. She reached her hand up to push a lock of hair back from Catra’s face. 

“It hurt, didn’t it? You cared about him and you wanted him to tell you everything, right?” A familiar ache had entered Catra’s voice and Glimmer kept her hand in Catra’s hair, running her thumb softly over one of Catra’s ears. 

“It hurt,” Glimmer affirmed. 

“You can keep the secret if you want,” Catra concluded. “You can, and I won’t stop you. But this is causing you pain, and it’ll cause them pain to see you hiding something and feeling like you can’t say anything. You don’t have to do full disclosure, but please tell them what happened. And don’t just say you killed Shadow Weaver, you have to tell them what she did to you.” 

“Will they think what I did was justified, somehow?” 

“I don’t know. But I think you are justified, and I’m happy to tell you that until you stop needing to hear it.” Catra’s thumb claw gently scratched across Glimmer’s cheek. “Can we agree on that?” 

Glimmer gave the barest of nods. 

“Okay.” Catra let go, and Glimmer felt unmoored all of the sudden. “We’ll be to Bright Moon in a few hours, and I have an important question for you.” 

“What is it?” 

Catra smirked, all sense of solemnity gone. “How much do you need to tie me up to make my capture convincing?” 

…

_ She thought she remembered Catra crying. _

_ Catra was angry and spitting indignant vitriol, standing in the hallway between her and the door. She couldn’t believe Catra would say any of that knowing she was listening. None of it was meant for her, but Catra had always seemed too private to air her grievances in front of third parties. _

_ She had the feeling as if Catra were on a perpetual ledge, swaying back and forth, tipping side to side, always ready to plummet. Right then, one side of the chasm held Catra’s permission to pass her, and the other side held Catra’s fury, all-consuming and all-destructing. Perhaps if she had been alone, Catra would have turned a blind eye and let them win, just as she always did in her little ways. _

_ But she wasn’t alone. Someone’s vice grip yanked at her hand and Catra rushed forward to attack. _

_ Everything blurred after that; Adora begged Catra not to activate the Portal and Catra kept looking over at her as if she’d taken Catra’s heart from her body and cut it apart. In the end, Catra flipped the switch, her anger exhausting into frigidity. _

_ She thought she remembered Catra crying. _

But now Catra was smiling, and she was looking at Glimmer. 

…

Adora and Bow sprinted to meet them at the gates. 

“Oh my god, Glimmer, are you alright?” 

“What is she doing here? Is she properly secured?” 

“We were so worried about you.” 

“Why did you leave the castle when you were so sick? Catra could have taken advantage of your compromised well-being!” 

“We’re so glad you’re okay!” 

Glimmer held her palm out in a stopping motion. Her friends went quiet. “I’m alright. I got better and I found where Catra was hiding so I brought her back to Bright Moon.” 

“I personally think it’s cheating when you use magic to find people,” Catra piped up, gesticulating with her bound hands. “It’s just unfair, I had to survive out there on my wits alone and you just come waltzing in with no gear and little spheres of pink glitter floating in your hands and all my hard work was useless.” 

Adora whirled on Glimmer. “No gear? Were you asking to die of dehydration in the Crimson Waste?” 

Glimmer sighed. “I left without thinking, that’s on me. But I didn’t starve.” 

“Yes, because I helped you,” Catra retorted. “You’d have poisoned yourself the first day without me.” 

“How are you guys this useless at packing for trips?” Adora bemoaned. “I thought you were supposed to be the ones who valued the lives of your officers.”

“Ouch.” Catra exaggeratedly held her hands over her mouth in shock. 

“You’re being too nonchalant about this.” Adora asked Glimmer, “Are you sure there wasn’t any kind of trap? Is there any backup coming for her?” 

“No.” At Adora’s skeptical look, Glimmer said, “She’s burned a lot of bridges.” 

“Hey, I told you that in confidence.” Catra actually seemed hurt, so Glimmer vowed to make it up to her later. 

“So nobody’s going to ambush us in the middle of the night from information sent by Catra’s secret comm device?” Bow questioned worriedly. 

“You just gave me a great idea for future kidnappings, kiddo, but no, no secret comm device,” Catra said, giggling a little. 

Adora drew Bow and Glimmer aside, all while keeping an eagle eye on Catra. “Something’s up with her,” Adora hissed. “Are you completely and entirely sure nothing fishy is going on?” 

Glimmer huffed. “I’m sure, okay? Don’t you trust me?” 

“Of course I trust you,” Adora replied, letting out a breath. “I just don’t trust her.” 

“Aw, can’t we forgive and forget?” asked Catra lazily. The group whipped around to face her directly. “You know I can hear everything you’re saying, right? That’s just shoddy planning.” 

Bow and Adora groaned in frustration, while Glimmer hid a smile. 

“I hate that she always has sassy rejoinders,” said Bow. “It makes battle funnier but also more humiliating if she beats you.” 

Catra clicked her tongue approvingly. “That’s the point, handsome.” 

Glimmer rolled her eyes, saying, “We should probably put her in the dungeon and not leave her here for anybody innocent to find.” 

“The spare room is not very menacing, though,” Adora pointed out, her voice skeptical. 

“You know what, it’s the best we have and we’re going to make sure Catra is efficiently menaced,” Bow replied cheerfully. “We took out the cushions, we can definitely take out the other furniture.” 

“Leave a sofa for me to lounge on, if you please,” Catra drawled.

…

_ Glimmer wasn’t sure; she didn’t think she could ever be sure. _

_ “If you don’t want to, I’ll throw the first handful,” Catra said gently. _

_ “Thank you, but it’s my responsibility.” Glimmer took a deep breath, reaching down into the bubble, which had conveniently opened for her, and taking out a fistful of ashes. “Where should I throw it, do you think?” _

_ “I would throw each handful in a different direction, just to make completely sure that she won’t come back and haunt us.” Catra reached into the bubble, too, pulling out gray dust of her own. “She’ll find a way. I mean, I trust your magical fire skills, but I don’t want to take any chances.” _

_ Glimmer nodded. “On the count of three?” _

_ Catra held up her hand. “On the count of three.” _

_ They threw the ash into the air, and Glimmer summoned a gust of wind to carry it far away from the forest. _

_ “Well, that’s efficient,” Catra said, her voice falsely cheerful and her eyes glistening. “She’s gone, just like that.” _

_ Glimmer put a hand on Catra’s shoulder. “We’ve got a few more to go.” _

_ “Yeah, yeah, I know.” She wiped her eyes annoyedly. “I’m getting there.” _

_ “She can’t hurt us anymore,” Glimmer murmured, voice growing cold. “Not ever.” _

_ “Not ever,” echoed Catra, scooping up another handful of ashes and tossing it into the sky. _

…

“Did you break in?” Catra whispered. “Did you rough up some guards to get through?” 

Glimmer smiled. “No, I just walked in.” She crossed the dark room; a singular chair had been set up in front of the forcefield holding Catra prisoner. Glimmer sat, her hands in her lap. “How are the accommodations treating you?” 

“Well, if you must know, I could use a pillow. It’s important to keep the cervical spine in alignment.” Catra gestured behind her to the pillow-less couch. Rather than lounging on it, she’d leaned her back against the side of it, her knees pulled up to her chest. 

“I’ll see what I can do.” Glimmer looked down at her hands. “I’m sorry you’re stuck here.” 

Catra snorted. “I’m not. You guys are feeding me.” 

“Ever so easy to please.” This smile was brighter and more visible to Catra. It arranged itself into something more solemn after a moment, though. “I wanted to say that Entrapta broke away from the soldiers meant to take her to Beast Island, and she’s been with us ever since.” 

Taking a moment to think, Catra finally said, “Is there any way to direct her to Hordak?” 

“I can try. She probably has a better way of fixing on his exact location, anyway. ‘I magically made a path’ only works for a select few people.” 

“She’s smart, she’ll work it out.” She paused. “Can you sneak her in here before she goes? I owe her an apology.” 

“Of course,” Glimmer replied. “Of course.” 

They didn’t speak for a minute, Catra lightly scratching her fingernails up and down her leg and Glimmer swinging her feet back and forth. Neither one would look at the other. 

“Nobody suspects anything,” Glimmer suddenly blurted. “I’m going to tell Adora and Bow, though.” 

“I’m glad you made a decision,” Catra asserted quietly. “I didn’t want it to weigh on you.” 

“I was going to ask if you’d be there with me when I told them.” 

Catra’s head snapped up. “You’re serious?” 

“If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I just had to make sure,” Glimmer snapped, folding her arms and looking off to the side. 

“Doll, you’re misunderstanding. I would love to be there, I just don’t think the dream team would feel as positively about it as you do.” 

Glimmer paused before answering. “My aunt put up this barrier, I can break it down. Or I can have you escorted by armed guards, whichever approach Adora and Bow agree with first.” 

Smirking, Catra replied, “You’ll have me there come hell or high water, won’t you?” 

“I would say for solidarity, but I’m the only one who committed first-degree murder in the last couple weeks.” 

“Hey, it’s easily second-degree. Also, near-genocide by proxy counts as solidarity.” 

Glimmer began to giggle uncontrollably, putting her face in her hands as she felt water run down her cheeks. 

“It’ll be alright,” Catra soothed, kneeling right at the edge of the barrier. “They will still love you afterward.” She paused, reaching out to touch the barrier and wincing as a shock ran through her fingers. “I promise, they will still love you.” 

…

_ “I want to tell you about sensitive information concerning Shadow Weaver’s whereabouts,” Glimmer said coolly, avoiding eye contact. _

_ Bow and Adora nodded, Adora scrunching her face up in worry and Bow giving her the ultimate puppy dog eyes. “Okay?” Adora said. “What do we need to know?” _

_ “I can’t tell you here or now. We need to be certain of the security of the information.” _

_ “That’s even scarier than the first thing you said,” Bow pointed out. “Are you in danger? Is Shadow Weaver sending you undercover info from behind enemy lines?” _

_ “No, nothing like that,” replied Glimmer resignedly. “Just please be in my mom’s old room at noon tomorrow. I’ll need to put a spell on the door.” _

_ “If you’re in trouble, we want to help you,” Adora said, holding out her hand for Glimmer to take. She did, squeezing it almost too hard. Bow grabbed Glimmer’s other hand gently. _

_ Glimmer shook her head. “I’m okay. Just be there, alright?” _

_ Her best friends said they would, Bow pulling her into a hug before he left and Adora kissing her on the forehead. “We love you, okay? We’ll always be here if you need anything.” _

_ Glimmer gave a tiny nod. Adora closed the door softly behind her, still looking unconvinced that nothing was wrong. _

…

The next day, Glimmer threatened two younger guards with one authoritative look into releasing Catra into Glimmer’s hands, promising to put the barrier back up once she brought Catra back. It was suspiciously easy; Glimmer wondered if her aunt or Adora had put pressure on the castle’s inhabitants to give Glimmer anything she wanted. 

Catra looked smugly at the entire exchange, dramatically presenting her wrists for Glimmer to bind once the guards were suitably threatened. Glimmer rolled her eyes and used an illusion spell to put the guards at ease, but Catra’s wrists remained unbound. 

She could have run at any time. But she stayed. 

“You have to promise not to make fun of the décor,” Glimmer murmured. 

“Well, if you’re asking ahead of time, I will definitely need to make fun of it at some point.” Catra side-eyed her. “Is the dream team already there?” 

“Maybe? I told them to come at noon, but you know Adora.” 

“On time is late with her, yeah, I remember.” 

The rest of the walk passed in silence. Glimmer couldn’t bring herself to look at any of the paintings, so she kept her gaze on her feet. Catra, being Catra, had to stand directly in front of every painting and wall decoration for half a second each before darting to the next one. 

Glimmer’s mom’s door stood ajar. She could see Adora pacing back and forth inside, Bow making placating gestures. Glimmer could pinpoint the moment her friends saw them. 

Adora sped into the doorway, locking into a defensive stance. “What is she doing here?” 

“Moral support,” Catra snarked. “What’re _ you _doing here?” 

Bow looked nervous, but not angry (thankfully). “I’m sure Glimmer has a good reason to bring Catra here. She could be a witness to the information.” 

“A dishonest one,” Adora shot back. “There can be no guarantees to anything she says.” 

“I vouch for her,” replied Glimmer sharply. “That has to be enough.” 

Bow backed off, figuratively and literally, returning to the room and flopping into an armchair. Adora moved more slowly, ushering Catra in and acting as a barrier between her and Glimmer until Adora could nudge Catra onto a much less plush armchair. 

Spite came in interesting forms, Glimmer mused. 

Catra rearranged her limbs to take up all of the space in the chair, making herself exaggeratedly comfortable. “Aren’t you going to sit, too?” she directed at Glimmer, tone soft and contrary to her performed body language. 

“Of course. Yes.” Glimmer delicately perched on her mom’s bed, shifting her weight. 

Adora sat on the arm of Bow’s chair, keeping one foot on the floor. “So, what’s the top-secret information on Shadow Weaver? She’s been gone for over a week and a half now, something important must be happening.” 

Glimmer averted her eyes, waving a hand to close and lock the door. She put an extra soundproofing spell on the walls as well. “It’s not what you think. She’s not on a mission,” said Glimmer finally. 

“Where is she then?” Bow asked gently. 

“I…” She paused. She looked at Catra. Catra’s posture relaxed visibly, became more open. 

“It’s okay,” Catra said. “I can tell it if that’s what you need.” 

“No, I’ll do this myself.” Glimmer clenched her hands into fists. “The spell, the one that let Shadow Weaver use my teleportation powers, began to backfire, more than it had in battle.” 

“But you weren’t in battle,” Bow pointed out. 

Glimmer took a breath. “Shadow Weaver would...steal my power after the battle. Only a little bit at first. She said she needed it for repairing the kingdom, for...I don’t remember everything she told me. But it...drained me, I guess. I started getting sick, I started getting weaker. And she...she kept taking and taking, and she kept saying it was my fault she did it, that I needed to give it to her to make up for the things my mom and I messed up before Shadow Weaver got here.” 

“But that doesn’t make sense,” Adora said after a moment, folding her arms. “She didn’t need to be anywhere, in fact, we were still trying to keep an eye on her in the rebellion.” 

Glimmer tried to focus on breathing. “Why wouldn’t it make sense for Shadow Weaver to do that? She’s used many more people than just me.” 

Adora immediately looked remorseful. “I’m sorry, that’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?” Catra snapped. 

“I meant that Shadow Weaver had no reason to be traveling. Anything she said to you to get you to give up your power was a lie.” Adora paused. “She just wanted power and she didn’t care how she got it.” 

“But you’re not sick anymore,” Bow said, fiddling with the strap of his quiver. 

“That’s…” Glimmer looked at a spot on the floor. “Shadow Weaver kept making me sicker and sicker, and before long she stopped asking for magic and started...started taking it when I was sleeping or when I told her not to. I felt...so _hopeless,_ I felt like it would kill me. I felt like she’d take everything that was me and leave a shell behind. I felt scared that she would never stop and I’d never be able to stop her. I was afraid...that you’d find out and you’d be on her side.” She choked up. “...The night...the night we disappeared, she was about to take the last of it, and I fought back. I don’t know how, but I completely drained her of power, mine and hers. And she died. I killed her. I left her a husk, smoking on the ground. And then I ran away, taking her body with me.” 

Glimmer stopped speaking. She didn’t tell them about making the path, or getting to the Crimson Waste, or burning Shadow Weaver’s body. She just turned off. 

No one replied to what she’d said for a while. Adora’s hands closed into fists and opened, over and over again. Bow, noticing, placed his hand over the hand closest to him. Catra looked ready to spring, either at Adora and Bow for not responding or to Glimmer to comfort her. The room was quiet; the wind had stopped blowing outside and there were no murmuring guards patrolling the hallway outside. 

“I guess you’re wondering why I’m here.” Catra’s flat voice cut through the stillness. “She came to me, we burned Shadow Weaver’s body, and we scattered her ashes. Shadow Weaver won’t be coming back.” 

No one responded. 

“Well? What do you have to say to her?” asked Catra, frustrated. “You can’t just ignore what she told you in confidence, trusting that you would still care about her and treat her as a friend afterward.” 

“Catra,” Glimmer exhaled. 

“I’m just saying it’s not fair for them to sit there and do nothing, doll.” Standing up, Catra walked over and sat down next Glimmer, wobbling a little as the bed gave underneath her. She put her palm on the juncture between Glimmer’s neck and shoulder, feeling her pulse beat. Glimmer closed her eyes. 

Adora sobbed, just then. When Glimmer could look at her, Adora had her left hand covering her face, and Bow was trying to soothe her. Glimmer didn’t move. Adora breathed in and out, trying to get herself under control. Adora never cried, Glimmer thought numbly, she never, ever did; Glimmer and Bow were always the criers. 

“Stars, I’m so sorry,” Adora finally said, after calming down and wiping her eyes. “I’m so, so sorry. She came after me, and I stupidly thought she’d changed. I never should’ve let her near you.” 

“I don’t blame you,” Glimmer replied quietly. 

“Well, I blame me. She manipulated every single person into doing what she wanted and was incapable of seeing people as anything more than reservoirs of unused potential. She pillaged, invaded, took everything of value. And I let that monster link herself to your power.” 

“I remember being fairly insistent on it in the beginning.” 

“That doesn’t excuse my actions.” 

“We can’t all be self-sacrificing paragons of angst, alright?” Catra cut in. “It’s done. The real perpetrator is dead and gone and we get to rebuild our lives. Does that sound reasonable?” 

Everyone nodded. 

“Lovely. We can get into this further later, but for now, I think everyone needs a fucking nap. Are we in agreement?” 

Everyone nodded again. 

Catra pushed past Glimmer to pull back the coverlet on the bed. She climbed under the blankets and curled into a ball, falling asleep right away. Glimmer sighed, then climbed in next to her and wound one arm over Catra’s shoulder. Adora and Bow spooned behind Glimmer, their arms curling over Glimmer’s side. They all closed their eyes; their pulses steadied. 

For the first time since her mom died, Glimmer felt safe, protected, and loved completely. 

…

_ “You know I love you very much, right?” Bow whispered, shushing Adora when she began to wake up. She settled back down, her nose brushing the back of Glimmer’s neck and her arm tightening around Glimmer’s waist. _

_ “Yeah,” responded Glimmer, volume a little below Bow’s. Catra had turned toward her earlier, her head pillowed on Glimmer’s chest and her ear periodically flicking as she dreamed. _

_ “And nothing will ever change that, not for me. You’ve been my best friend since forever and you’ll be my best friend until forever. We’ll protect each other better from now on, okay?” _

_ Glimmer let a few tears slide down the side of her face. “Okay.” _

…

The four of them spent most of the rest of the day sleeping, Adora and Bow leaving in the evening to inform the rebellion that Glimmer was fully recovering from her trip and would be back to hold meetings tomorrow. They ate dinner sitting on the floor, Bow having convinced the kitchen staff to make all of Glimmer’s favorite foods. Catra hovered close enough to be arm’s length from Glimmer at all times, giving her pieces of fruit and shoveling food from her own plate onto Glimmer’s. Adora ate slowly, her gaze flicking to Glimmer every few seconds. Bow seemed troubled but peaceful, content to just know that Glimmer was safe. 

“Are you going back to the spare room?” Adora asked when all the plates were clean, glancing to Catra. 

“I’m not going anywhere that she doesn’t want me to go,” Catra replied, her tone brokering no discussion. 

“I want you to stay with me.” Glimmer’s voice was quiet but firm. “We’ll send Entrapta after Hordak to implement cautionary containment measures. I won’t make you go back to the Crimson Waste. I want you here, in Bright Moon.” 

Catra nodded, pecking Glimmer on the cheek. “I’ll stay until you want me to go and not before then, you got it?” 

“Yeah.” Glimmer smiled. Both Adora and Bow looked cautiously approving, so Glimmer counted it as a win. “I’ll set you up in my room, I think I have a chaise lounge you can use.” 

“It has ‘lounge’ in the name, I’m down,” answered Catra, beaming back. 

Bow and Adora finally left the room for the night at around eleven, hesitating to go and making Glimmer promise to find them if she needed anything. 

“I feel like I can breathe like I’m supposed to again,” Glimmer said once her friends had gone, her head in Catra’s lap. “Like there was gunk in my throat before but it’s gone now.” 

Humming in agreement, Catra ran her fingers through Glimmer’s hair. 

“I don’t think I’ll ever...be able to get back to who I was. Shadow Weaver will always be there, I think. But I’m not by myself anymore.” 

“You were never by yourself, doll, that’s the important thing.” Catra’s hand stopped moving, her voice continuing more gently. “Sometimes you’ll still think that, I know I still think that a lot, but we’ll keep telling each other we’re wrong until we believe it.” 

Glimmer closed her eyes. “I love you.” She paused. “Is that okay? We can figure it out if you don’t feel that for me, I just wanted to tell you.” 

After a few seconds, during which Glimmer could feel Catra’s heartbeat speed up, Catra said slowly, “It’s okay.” 

Glimmer softly smiled. “We’ll figure it out.” 

“Yes. We’ll figure it out.” 

…

The official story was that Shadow Weaver had betrayed the Princess Rebellion, fleeing into the Crimson Waste to find Hordak and redeem herself to his cause. Since Hordak and Entrapta had reunited, and Hordak now lived in Dryl with her under house arrest and constant surveillance from Bright Moon and Entrapta’s bots, Shadow Weaver never found him, and she died in the desert, perhaps killed by those loyal to Catra, perhaps died from starvation or dehydration. 

Long-range teleportation was never attempted again, but a series of outposts was constructed to provide humanitarian aid to the shattered remains of the Horde and to protect against future takeover by another dictator. Scorpia led the Horde now, as the highest-ranking officer to survive the Portal incident. Both the Princess Rebellion and the Horde were cautious of each other for a long time, but their relationship was cordial and prepared for alliance should a greater threat surface. 

Catra was instated as queen consort soon after Bright Moon coronated Glimmer as queen, a role she used to ground the rebellion’s actions in practicality and pointed insistence on helping the world rebuild after she opened the Portal. Glimmer steadfastly defended Catra’s place in the court and much of the rebellion began trusting Catra as an equal. 

“So this is where you were,” Scorpia said, tears welling in her eyes. 

“Yeah. Turns out Glimmer doesn’t mind squatters,” Catra replied, crying a little, too. 

“You have to tell me the whole story, I hope you know that.” 

Catra wrapped her arms around Scorpia, squeezing tighter than should have been comfortable. “I’ll say what I can. But it’s not all mine to tell.”


End file.
